Opening the album, I really like how the band started slow with you. Fits the band as it has this melancholic but really melodic tone which is one of the more stronger things this band is known for. ryo sounds nice and tackles those high notes in stride and watching that plus the band slowly rising to the occasion as well is impressive. Great song to open the album with!

2. dye an unease

Moving on, dye an unease brings more of that alternative sound that I’ve gotten accustomed to through the singles, but this has a little more edge with that chorus with all that heavy percussion and sense of unrest. It’s an OK track, but that percussion did slightly get annoying after a while. If they had toned that down a little bit, this song would’ve been more enjoyable.

3. BLANK BLACK

Back into 9GOATS’ mysterious tracks, BLANK BLACK is a great represention of what the band has sounded like through the last few singles. I like the band a lot in this song and ryo sounds amazing with his deep vocals. It just sounds dark and epic when it picks up the pace and gets that gritty rock sound going. Definitely an early favorite!

4. Tsuioku wa Tsumi

When I turned this on, I immediately thought I was listening to “you” again because it has the same laidback and rock-ballad tone, plus ryo is singing with more of his higher register which makes sense why I felt this was similar to the aforementioned track. Suffice to say, I wasn’t too intrigued by it but if I had heard this first, I’m sure that I would have enjoyed this more oddly enough…so it’s not that bad.

5. Panta rhei

As the album’s long track (I think), Panta rhei is another one of the slow songs on the album, but I also find myself liking it despite being almost 6 minutes long. What I really like the melodic tone between ryo’s high and low vocals…it made the song very creepy but sad as well. It was a really interesting ballad and one of the better ones from the album!

6. Shut up “G”

As odd of a title it is, it’s also the album’s interlude. At this point in the album, we haven’t heard anything this chaotic and heavy yet so this is a welcome change but I didn’t expect ryo to growl his lines…it was a very strange and kind of the oddball track IMO because of it’s hardcore sound.

7. Canaria

Though I guess it was a bridge to more of the progressive stuff the band likes to release. Canaria is one of the more unique tracks because we hear ryo under some filters, but the band is also playing a lot louder. I actually kind of like this slick track and even though the filters do get somewhat tiring, it’s not too much of a negative that I can’t enjoy it because it is really good overall ^_^

8. Asche

It sounds like 9GOATS wanted to be a little more artsy with Asche, but it felt like a mess throughout the song because the verses and the chorus did not sound right together and the transition into each other are really are a bit strange as well. The guitar solo is awesome, but doesn’t really save the song sadly.

9. Yurikago

The next song, Yurikago sounds really cool and a bit more experimentive and this time it worked for them because for being a little more upbeat and (slightly) danceable. I just really loved the instrumental of the song because it shows a bit more diversity from the more darker songs. This is definitely my favorite song from the album.

10. rip current

I kind of was hoping we’d get a song like rip current because while it might not be the most interesting song the album has to offer, it’s a pleasant song and works with 9GOATS’ strengths in mid-tempo tracks and it worked. Not bad actually!

11. 8byou

Closing the album (on the CD, the bonus tracks are actually on the DVD), 8byou ends the album on a high note with one another energetic song. I like the movement of the song quite a bit it’s like they turned the tempo up from “rip current” and let it fly. It’s great to hear ryo pulling the song off nicely with the other members pulling their weight quite smoothly. Awesome way to end the album!

Tracks Recommended

Yurikago

BLANK BLACK

Panta rhei

you

Canaria

Song of Avoidance

Asche

*wil lreview the bonuses if they appear* Damnit, another band that’s disbanding right when I get into them. I’d say this is a pretty above-average album…there were some great songs and them songs not-so-good songs here, but it’s about what I expected from 9GOATS BLACK OUT, only thing is is that I wish it wasn’t the band’s final album T.T